It's a Perfectly Perfect Life
by Duckyumbrella
Summary: Trixie wishes she had never been born, and finds herself traveling through a topsy-turvy world without a Trixie to save the day.
1. Chapter 1

Two days ago I woke up with this story rolling through my mind with every scene, every line carved out to the last detail. So for the next two days I typed it up really fast so I wouldn't forget it and now here it is!

I'm just kinda upset I couldn't have come up with this before Christmas instead of after.

Some parts might be kinda confuzzling to you if you haven't read certain Trixie Belden books. But I think you'll get the gist of it:)

So now without further ado, I give you...

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**It's a Perfectly Perfect Life**

**Part 1**

"Well I'm sorry, Jim. Maybe if I'd never been born at all, I wouldn't be such a huge burden to you!" 32 year old Trixie Frayne yelled angrily at her husband of five years, before quickly slamming the back door behind her as she raced out into the falling December snow, her tears freezing to her face as the gusting winter wind whipped at her mess of blond curls.

_Good thing I hadn't taken off my coat yet_ She thought gratefully, pulling the hood over her head.

Trixie trudged quickly through the snow into the dense woods that bordered the widespread backyard at Ten Acres, the rebuilt mansion where she lived with husband, Jim, and her two children, Katie, age four, and her one year old, Jamie.

_Why did I yell at him?_ Trixie thought miserably _Just because I've had a terrible week doesn't mean I should take it out on Jim. He deserves so much better than me…_

Trixie hadn't had a great week. First she had gotten into an argument with her middle brother and almost-twin, Mart Belden, which usually wouldn't have been so out of the ordinary, but they seemed to be arguing more and more over little things lately.

Then her friend Diana Belden had backed out of last-minute Christmas shopping, so Trixie was forced to face the hyperactive crowds of obsessive shoppers on her own.

On top of that, Katie had just gotten over the flu, which had kept Trixie home most of the week.

Then, on Christmas Eve no less, she had found out that her eldest brother, Brian, and his wife, Honey, wouldn't make it home for the Christmas Eve party that night.

Then when Jim had come home from work, she'd just lost it all on him before storming out of the house. _Which was real mature, by the way_ She told herself sarcastically.

The young blond woman walked deeper into the woods, oblivious to the strengthening wind and heavily falling snow. She stumbled over outcropping rocks and fallen branches as she continued blindly through the white wall of snow.

"I'm just causing problems for everyone." Trixie grumbled to herself, her bright blue eyes troubled. "I wish I was never born. Everyone would have the most perfectly perfect life if it wasn't for dumb old Trixie."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." A voice came from behind her.

Trixie whirled around to see an old woman standing behind her, wearing only a thin wool shawl over her long dress, but the wind didn't seem to bother her.

In fact, the roaring wind didn't even cause her long grey hair to sway, nor did the snow keep her wide grey eyes from looking directly at Trixie, confusion written on her deeply wrinkled face.

The elderly woman's words were surprisingly clear over the wind. "Well you are certainly not the kind of person that I expected to hear the 'I wish I was never born' wish from. You live quite a wonderful life, Trixie, or 'perfectly perfect' as you may say. But if you insist on not being born, so be it."

The little old woman shrugged her shoulders as if it didn't matter to her in the least.

"Who are you?" Was the first question Trixie managed to spit out after her initial shock.

The woman smiled confidently, "My name is Gina, and I've been sent to show you the world without a Trixie."

"Oookay…" Trixie said hesitantly, wondering if Jim would hear her scream from way out here…

"Now don't be afraid, dear." Gina chuckled, as if reading the younger woman's thoughts. "I'm merely going to show you how much you have touched many lives throughout your life, and how important you have been to these people."

"Yeah, alright." Trixie answered with a roll of her eyes. "I highly doubt I've really touched anyone's life so drastically that it would change if I wasn't around. I cause more problems than I do solve them."

Gina walked up beside Trixie and wove her right arm through Trixie's left, and whispered softly, "You will be surprised to see how wrong you are…"

Gina put a gloved finger to the rim of her ridiculously big sombrero-like hat, and Trixie found herself swirling away from the woods in a vortex of white and green, before coming to a sudden stop as her feet hit a snow-covered sidewalk.

"Where are we?" Trixie asked, looking though the large window of the building in front of them, a fancy restaurant where she watched elegantly dressed people dining over fine cuisine.

"This is Le Chez Framague in New York City, where we will be stopping for dinner." Gina answered, as she walked nonchalantly into the restaurant and sat down in an empty booth.

Trixie was momentarily too stunned to do anything but follow the older woman and take the seat across from her.

"While you are here, you are unable to talk to or reach out to anyone." Gina warned her, "They can't hear, see, nor feel you. You are merely a spectator watching a movie. You have no role in this film. Trixie Frayne does not exist."

Trixie wasn't paying attention. She had just spotted a young woman with long black hair and soft violet eyes walk out of the kitchen carrying a large platter of food on one hand.

"Is that Di?" Trixie asked, as she noticed how pale and thin the woman looked.

Gina looked over and nodded sadly. "Yes, that is poor Diana Lynch. She has been a waitress here since she was about 16, and now all the money she gets goes to help out her family, who live just outside the city in a small apartment."

"Never been married, the poor dear, she has no time for a personal life when she's so busy just trying to care for her parents and siblings."

"How is that possible?" Trixie wondered aloud, her blue eyes following the raven-haired figure, "Whatever happened Mr. Lynch's boatload of money? Surely Diana doesn't have to work here with that sort of money. And why didn't Di ever marry Mart?"

She looked imploringly at the woman seated across from her.

Gina shook her head sadly. "Do you remember Diana's 'Uncle Monty' who was planning to rob the Lynches? The one that you proved was a fake? He took absolutely everything they owned."

"You weren't around to stop him, Trixie, so he got away with it, and the Lynches were left with nothing. And as for Mart and Diana not marrying, you were never there to become friends with Diana, so the two of them never even met."

"Oh woe!" Trixie moaned softly, her hands clutching her blond curls. Just then Trixie caught sight of a familiar head of honey-colored hair sitting just a few booths away.

"HONEY!!" she shrieked, jumping out of the booth and running over to her best friend. Trixie was startled as, in trying to hug her friend, her arm went right through her!

"I told you. You can't touch anyone." Gina's voice said from behind Trixie. Scowling, Trixie walked back to the booth and watched as Honey and the elegantly dressed man seated across from her ate their meal.

"So who's that guy that Honey is sitting with?" Trixie asked, taking in the man's perfectly combed light blond hair, his expensive looking suit, and icicle blue eyes that stared adoringly at the woman seated across from him.

"That would be Pierre DePaulote, a very rich man from southern France. He owns a multi-million dollar business, and he and his wife, Honey, although here she prefers to be called Madeline, are now visiting her family for the holidays before taking a two month cruise around the Caribbean. Apparently the two of them met at some fancy boarding school years ago and… is something wrong, Trixie?" Gina asked.

Trixie's jaw dropped in shock, and she finally blurted out, "She looks so pale and sick, like she looked when she first moved to Sleepyside. Since when does Honey go by her real name instead of her nickname?? She hated being called Madeline! And what's up with this boarding school?? She got away from all that formal stuff once she moved to Sleepyside and met me and… why are you shaking your head?"

Gina's grey eyes were sorrowful as she answered, "In the mix of things, this one event may have affected the most lives in the long run. Madeline Wheeler, or Honey, as you call her, did move to Sleepyside that summer. But a lot of things happened that summer, even without you there, but because you weren't there, many of those events didn't have very positive outcomes."

"So when the summer was over, Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler moved back to New York City. Honey was sent off to boarding school again, where she met Pierre. He was from a well connected, well suited family, and they were married just a few years ago."

"So what exactly happened that summer? What could have been so bad that it forced the Wheelers to move away?" Trixie asked.

Gina shook her head slowly, "All in good time, dear." She answered vaguely.

Trixie watched as Honey and Pierre paid the bill and walked out of the restaurant. "Let's follow them!" Trixie exclaimed as she raced out the door, Gina having no choice but to follow her.

"All this trouble for a stupid pair of wings…" she grumbled under her breath.

Honey and Pierre were strolling down the sidewalk, Trixie and Gina right behind them, when a dark figure jumped out of the shadows in front of them.

"Empty your pockets and gimme your money! And I wouldn't recommend screaming if you know what's good for you." A gruff, familiar voice ordered from beneath the ski mask, a nearby streetlight glinting off the barrel of the gun he held steadily in his hands.

Trixie's blue eyes went wide in shock and horror as her mind registered who the voice belonged to. "Dan Mangan!" she whispered hoarsely.

Gina leaned over and spoke softly in Trixie's ear. "His uncle Bill Regan did end up finding him, but without any Bob-white influence, Dan just ran away back to the gang, because that is the only life he knows."

"Regan tried to come back for him again, but his past in Saratoga finally caught up with him. He's sitting in jail right now, a framed man, without you around to prove his innocence."

Honey looked on the verge of passing out as the black-clad figure ordered her to throw her purse to him. "Can't you do something to stop this?!" Trixie pleaded Gina desperately.

Gina shook her head no. "We are merely spectators." Trixie watched as Pierre made like he was taking out his wallet, but instead pulled out a gun and aimed it right at Dan's heart.

"Drop the gun and the purse now." Pierre commanded, his speech heavily accented.

"Oh yeah?" Dan asked, swinging the gun at Honey. "You drop the gun, or I'll shoot your pretty little wife."

"Pierre?!" Honey whimpered her hazel eyes wide in terror.

"NO!!" Trixie cried as she saw both Pierre's and Dan's fingers tighten on the trigger.

Gina grabbed Trixie's arm and put her finger to the rim of her hat. "I'm getting too old for this." She muttered.

The last thing Trixie heard was two gunshots and Honey's screams as the world began to fade around her...

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Enjoying so far? Review me then!:)

Obviously this is supposed to be based off of 'It's a Wonderful Life' but since Honey always says 'perfectly perfect' I thought that that made a more suitable title.

I cut out the majority of the 'wings' theme, because I've only seen that movie a handful of times, and I don't really remember the story too well.


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks so much for the reviews from ps9906, Mylee, and 24QueenMo!! You are the bestest!:)

Hope I didn't screw this up too badly for you, Queenie!:)

Happy New Year everybody!!! Wishing you all the best in 2010!!!:)

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**It's a Perfectly Perfect Life**

**Part 2**

"Why did you send us away?! We could've saved them!" Trixie was on a wild rant as soon as her feet hit solid ground again.

This time the two had landed on a loading dock, with about a dozen stationed boats lined up along the harbor. The single light on at the station house cast an eerie shadow across the black water. There were very few people still working on the docks this late at night.

Gina ignored Trixie's rage as she pointed her arm toward the boat near the end of the dock. "Look over there." She ordered.

Trixie squinted to see the worker on board. Although it was dark out, Trixie still managed to catch the shock of red hair cast off by the glittering moonlight.

"Oh Jim…" Trixie moaned, before taking off toward the tall, red-haired figure. Jim turned on the outside light on the boat and ran down into the boat, coming out a moment later hauling a large crate.

"After all that's seemed to change in this new world," Trixie began, speaking more to herself than Gina, "I was so scared that Jim had never escaped from Jonsey. But now here he is, completely-"

Trixie cut herself short as she shrieked in horror at her husband.

Dropping the crate on the deck, Trixie now had a full, close-up view of Jim's face. A long, silver scar ran jagged down his cheek and into the collar of his cotton shirt.

His nose looked crooked like it was broken, and his translucent cheeks looked hollow. His right eye looked so bloodshot it was completely red, just the green iris staring straight ahead while the left eye moved around.

Blister-like blotches covered his exposed arms, in colors of browns and pinks, and what looked like just a fleshy blob replaced the cartilage surrounding his left ear.

Trixie thought she was going to be physically sick as she took in Jim's contorted, scarred appearance. Not knowing she was even there, Jim picked up another crate and brought it back down to the hull. She stared in silent terror as she watched the man hobble down the stairs with a decisive limp.

"What- what happened?" Trixie managed to choke out, her heart feeling tight in her chest as she ached to hold her husband in her arms.

Gina placed a comforting hand on the younger woman's shoulder. "That summer years ago, Jim ran away from his stepfather, Jonesy, to his great uncle James's house."

"You weren't there to find Jim, bring him food, or update him on the happenings of the outside world. James Frayne still unfortunately died before Jim met him, and Jim spent most of his time wandering around the preserve, hunting for food, trying to figure out a plan of where to go from there."

"Jim was unaware of the reporter taking a picture of his mug, because you never brought him the newspaper. He thought he'd still have a safe day or two at his uncle's mansion before he had to hit the road."

"Jim fell asleep on the mattress that night, not the summer house as you may remember, unaware of his stepfather sneaking into the house to set the fire. Jonsey wanted Jim dead, you know. He wanted that inheritance all to himself."

"You weren't there to see the smoke, Trixie. You didn't run over to the mansion to wake Jim up, and warn him of the fire. Jim was badly burned in that fire, as you just saw. He was very lucky to get out of the house with his life. The house nearly collapsed while he was still in it."

"Jim heard Jonesy shouting from nearby, and began to run off again into the preserve. He somehow managed to make it all the way to that hermit's home… what is his name?"

"Mr. Maypenny." Trixie answered in a soft monotone, trying to digest all that she'd been told.

Gina nodded, "Yes that was it. Mr. Maypenny took Jim in and cared for his wounds. Jim stayed with Mr. Maypenny over the course of his recovery, then left to find work once he felt strong enough."

"He was afraid that if he stayed with Mr. Maypenny for too long, that Jonesy would find out and do something terrible to the kind old man."

"Jim went off to the three summer camps and didn't find any work, and without a certain blond girl and her friend coming to find him, Jim then found quick work on a cattle boat set sail for Europe."

"Jim never saw a single penny of his inheritance, because Jonesy collected it all and blew it all in one trip to Vegas." Gina finished her story, and watched through wide grey eyes as the blond woman came to terms with the information.

"I never thought I did so much for him that night." Trixie whispered in slight awe, her blue eyes misty. "Can we go now? I don't think I can stand being here with Jim and not be able to help him."

Trixie held out an arm to the older woman, "Do that spinning vortex thingy. Please."

Gina obliged, and with a tap on her hat, the two were spinning away from the docks toward a more familiar place of Trixie's.

"Why, we're at Crabapple Farm!" Trixie cried, as she ran up the snowy driveway leading to her childhood home. She ducked beneath the large living room window, wiped away the frost, and peered inside.

After looking for a moment, Trixie turned back toward Gina with slight satisfaction. "See? Their lives didn't seem to change any with me gone."

She gazed back through the window, where the group was drinking hot chocolate by the light of the Christmas tree and kept warm by the roaring fire in the cobblestone fireplace. "They all look pretty happy to me."

"That is because you don't know what is going on behind the scenes." Gina pointed to Trixie's parents, who were laughing at their grandchildren's antics from their seat on the overstuffed couch, their arms around one another and a blanket over their laps.

"Peter and Helen Belden have both taken on full time jobs to keep up the payments on Crabapple Farm. They have already sold over half the land, and the crop hasn't done well this year. If they don't have a good crop season next year, they'll have to foreclose."

"They can't foreclose Crabapple Farm!" Trixie exclaimed, "Are Mart, Brian, and Bobby helping out with the payments?"

Gina shook her head, "No, none of them help much, but each one of your three brothers has good reasons for not being able to help out." She answered vaguely.

Trixie let out a huffy breath and rolled her eyes. "This better be good, because if not they'll be hearing it from me!"

Gina smiled sadly as she moved on to the eldest Belden sibling. "Your brother, Brian, has been through a lot in the past few months. He and his wife, Rosalind, are getting a divorce, and both are fighting for full custody of their daughter, Sophia."

"This may be the last Christmas he is able to spend with his daughter."

"Wait!" Trixie cried, "You don't mean to say Brian married Rosalind Paullina, do you?? She was that stupid wh-"

Trixie cut herself off when she met Gina's disapproving gaze, "Sorry, I just get so mad when I think of that rich spoiled brat. Rosalind was a girlfriend of Brian's in college who I caught making out with another guy! It was after that that Brian dated Honey, and they ended up getting married. Why would Brian marry Rosalind if she was a cheating little bi-?"

"Because he never knew!" Gina interrupted, "You weren't there to walk in on Rosalind and Carl, so Brian never found out until he walked in on them one night… having fun."

Trixie's face flushed red with fury and her fists were clenched tight. "How dare she hurt my brother like that! I'll make her pay…" Trixie growled angrily.

Gina, who had always had a soft spot for the eldest Belden boy, answered her, "Get in line."

"So what will happen to Brian's daughter, Sophia?" Trixie questioned, watching the two year old bounce happily on her father's knee. Brian lifted Sophia up and she squealed in delight.

He kissed the top of her soft chocolate-brown curls, then placed her gently on the ground so she could go play with the small boy building with blocks on the rug.

Gina's grey eyes were misty as she watched the father-daughter scene unfold, "Well, since Rosalind has hired some of the best attorneys in the country, and Brian can barely afford the one he's got, things probably won't be in his favor when it comes to who has custody."

Trixie was silent for a minute, before asking, "And what about Mart? What's his story?"

The two women watched as Trixie's blond brother put an arm around the tall brunette woman seated next to him, as she leaned into his chest and he stole a kiss.

"Your brother, Mart, and his wife, Heather, have been married for about seven years now. They went through many disappointments in trying to have children over the years, until finally little Harry came along."

Gina pointed to the small blond boy playing with the blocks with his cousin. "Harry was born with Down syndrome, and Mart and Heather have dedicated their whole lives to make sure Harry gets the attention he needs."

"They look so happy. I wouldn't have thought that anything was wrong." Trixie said softly, as she watched her family gather together.

Something had been bothering Trixie since she had first looked into the room, and as she looked around the room again, she proved her own suspicion correct; that her youngest brother, Bobby, was missing from the group.

"Where is Bobby?" Trixie asked Gina, her voice laced with apprehension. A sad sigh reached Trixie's ears as she felt the small, wrinkly hand grasp her arm again.

"I'll show you." Gina whispered slowly, before sending them spiraling into the night.

The duo arrived in a small clearing surrounded by trees. Snow-covered rocks were scattered across the open field, and an eerie stillness froze the night air.

Gina led Trixie about halfway across the field before coming to an abrupt stop and dropping to her knees. Gina brushed the snow from atop the rock in front of her, then slowly stood up and backed away so Trixie could take her spot.

With a confused glance at the old woman, Trixie kneeled down in the icy snow and wiped the remaining snow off the rock. It was then that she noticed that the 'rock' had writing on it, as did many of the other 'rocks' surrounding it.

In a shaking voice, Trixie read aloud, "R.I.P. Robert Harold Belden, Beloved Son and Brother, February 8th, 2002- July 14th, 2008."

Trixie looked up at Gina, tears swimming in her blue eyes. "How?" she managed to choke out.

Gina sighed. This was always the toughest part of the job.

"Since you were never born, Trixie, you weren't there to suck out the venom and save Bobby's life when he got bitten by the copperhead that summer. He died at the age of six."

Trixie got up slowly from the gravesite, backing away from it as she was afraid it would strike.

"Give it back." The blond woman whispered hoarsely, her eyes glued to the gravestone.

Gina looked at her, confused, "Give what back?"

"My life." Trixie answered, her blue eyes filled with anger and horror. "Give me back my life! I want my friends and family back to the way they were! I want to go home and see my children and my husband and I WANT TO LIVE!!"

With that, Trixie took off into the woods, tears blinding her vision as she sobbed. "Trixie, wait! Come back!" She heard Gina call in the distance, but she didn't listen. She was tired of following around that crazy old lady!

"I wanna live, I wanna live." Trixie moaned as she continued racing blindly through the trees.

Moments later Trixie crashed head on into a tall, muscular figure. "Trixie! We've been looking everywhere for you!"

Strong arms steadied her as a walky-talky crackled to life. "I've got her! Everyone head back up to Ten Acres!" Jim Frayne turned his attention back to his wife.

"Jim?" Trixie whispered, not believing the sight of the red-haired man in front of her. His scars had disappeared from his face, and he was looking directly at her with two emerald green eyes, now dark in concern. "Is that really you?"

Wiping a tear from her rose-colored cheek with his thumb, Jim spoke gently, "Yes, babe, I'm here. Trixie, I was so worried. You left in the middle of the blizzard, then the storm just got worse and worse and then when it stopped and you still didn't come back…"

He planted a scorching kiss on her lips before adding huskily, "I thought you'd fallen and gotten hurt or got lost or…"

"Jim?" Trixie interrupted him, tracing her fingers along his perfect, scarless face, "Can you please take me home?"

Ten minutes later, Trixie and Jim Frayne walked through the front door of Ten Acres to be bombarded by friends and family. "We were so worried about you!" Diana Belden exclaimed, pulling her friend into a tight hug.

"I'm okay, really." Trixie answered her, returning the hug. Trixie spotted two familiar faces over the tops of Mart Belden and Dan Mangan's heads.

"Honey! Brian! You're home!" Trixie cried, hugging her best friend and brother whom she hadn't seen in two weeks.

"Just in time for all the excitement it seems." Honey answered with a laugh.

"You sure you're all right, Trix?" Brian asked, switching over to doctor mode.

"I promise I'm fine, Brian." She assured him.

Another head of blond curls caught her eye, "Bobby!" She yelled, throwing her arms around the tall man.

"You're so excited to see me, you'd think I had died and come back to life or something!" Bobby chuckled.

"Nothing that drastic, I assure you." She answered with a sparkle in her eye.

It was late that evening when the last of the Bob-whites left Ten Acres. Everyone had pulled together to make a fun Christmas Eve party for the adults and children alike. Katie and Jamie were asleep in their beds, waiting for Santa Claus to come.

Jim and Trixie had resided to the living room sofa with steaming cups of hot chocolate. As Trixie snuggled her head against Jim's chest, she remembered all that she had seen with Gina.

_She really helped me appreciate the better things in life_ Trixie thought, watching the fire slowly lick at the wood in the large fireplace.

"We really do have a wonderful life." Jim stated quietly, planting a kiss atop her soft blond curls.

Tilting her head slightly, Trixie looked up to meet Jim's emerald green eyes.

With a soft sigh, she whispered, "It's not just wonderful, Jim. It's a perfectly perfect life."

**The End**

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It's done! Merry belated Christmas everyone!! And Happy New Year!!:)

If ya liked it please review it!:)

The motherly old Gina will be making another appearance (in human form, mind you) in the third story after my other Trixie Belden story Mid-Summer Mourning, entitled Winter Wishes and Woes, if it ever gets finished (or started). That was why I mentioned that Gina is fond of Brian (but we'll eventually find out more about her later)

Also curious about Heather? She'll be in Winter Wishes and Woes too.:)

All the charactors like Gina, Heather, Sophia, Rosalind :P, Pierre, and Harry are my own charactors:)


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